TCOHPGTTRHPCHPIA
by dolphin35366
Summary: The Characters Of Harry Potter Get Together To Read Harry Potter Cause Harry Potter Is Awesome. We'll try our best to do all seven books so feel free to cyber hex us if we're being slow. Probably minor language and minor inuendos/suggestive comments.
1. Introduction

The Characters Of Harry Potter All Get Together To Read Harry Potter 'Cause Harry Potter Is Awesome.

Hello. This chapter was written by my friend, Rach and we are writing this together so thats wy it probably doesn't make that much sense in the AN on my account so sorry about that .

Okay, how are you? I'm good. Now, pleasantries out the way I'd like to introduce the story. Basically its another reads the Harry Potter books change the past thing but this one has loads of characters so have fun keeping track let me know if there's any confusion, I can post a list if you want.

Me and my friend Rachael, whose pen-name I cant think of right now cos its really random, are writing this together. I decided I wanted to do it and she wanted to help so here we are. We'll write a chapter each and all chapters will be posted on both accounts.

This first chapter is going to be quite long winded so bare with us please because we hope to make this the best we can, criticism is welcome but could you please put who the reviews are to at the beginning so we can just send them on to each other. Odd numbered chapters will be Rachael, and even numbered chapters will be me. Rach will also be adding a quote or something every chapter, mostly from music no doubt but the first one isn't, it is however something you might recognise.

Rachael would like to point out that she tried to post this last week while she was off school but she realised that we didn't think of a title for It and she was just sat there thinking, okay then, mega flaw in the plan. So, he-

Me: Rach?

Rach: Yeah?

Me: Would you get on with the story, your boring the readers.

Rach: What readers?

Me: Just because you don't see them.

Rach: I should hope you can't see them either, stalker!

J.: Girls if you wish to borrow the characters then I suggest you get on with it.

Rach: Certainly. We do not, though we wish to, own Harry Potter. Shame really.

_Dearest Children, _

_Since we have been abroad we have missed you all so much. Certain events have compelled us to extend our travels. One day, where you're older, you will learn all about the people we've befriended, and the dangers we have faced. _

_At times the world can seem an unfriendly and sinister place, but believe us when we say there is much more good in it than bad. All you have to do is look hard enough. And what might seem to be a series of unfortunate events, may, in-fact, be the first steps of a journey. _

_We hope to have you back in our arms soon darlings, but in case this letter arrives before our return, know that we love you. It fills us with pride to know that no matter what happens in this life, that you three will take care of each other with kindness, and bravery, and selflessness as you always have. _

_And remember one thing my darlings and never forget it - that no matter where we are, know that as long as you have each other, you have your family, and you are home. _

_Your loving parents._

_A Series of Unfortunate Events, (The film), The Letter That Never Came._

"Hermione, Ron Gin-ow, Guys get down to the kitchen." Harry called in frustration, shifting Teddy on his hip after walking into the banister and nearly dropping him.

Harry entered the kitchen in grimauld place and sat at the table, waiting as everyone sat around him.

"What's wrong Harry?" Draco asked sitting beside him.

"I got a letter this morning and I think you should hear it."

"Why, what does it say?" Neville asked from across the table.

"It says," Harry started pulling a letter from his pocket,

"_Dear Mr Potter,_

_Please gather your friends and read this aloud._

_This letter will send you to a bubble in time. In the bubble is a room and in the room are 7 books that I wish you all to read together, once everyone is there. I shall be there when you arrive to explain, then I will leave. _

_Have fun,_

_A Friend From The Future."_

A second later there was a quite 'pop' and the room began spinning. It wasn't until a few minutes after the spinning stopped that everyone realised that they weren't at home any more. The room they were in now was a mix between the four common rooms. It had a circle of beanbags, chairs and couches for everyone to sit on and a large circular table in the middle. On the table, there were the 7 books, spread out in a line.

_Harry Potter and the Philosophers Stone._

_Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets._

_Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Askaban._

_Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire._

_Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix._

_Harry Potter and the Half-blood Prince._

_Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows._

"I should have known the books were about you, why else would we be here." Draco muttered to Harry, shoving him playfully.

"Yeah, Yeah Draco."

"I wonder what Hufflepuff will be here." Hermione mused out loud gesturing to the yellow in the decoration.

"A young Alice Campbell (A.N. I didn't know her maiden name and this was the first thing that popped into my head. Sorry.) will be joining us and she is a Hufflepuff." A familiar stern voice said emerging from the shadows.

"My mum will be here?" Neville inquired, shocked.

"Yes Mr Longbottom, she will be. Now I'll make this quick so I can leave again. Everyone else will be here soon and I must insist that you keep them _calm_ and _safe _Potter. This bubble allows you to change the future of your parents in an alternate universe while your present remains untouched. To do this we will read about Harry's school years, he certainly knows more about what goes on than most teachers, never mind students. You can't tell them anything important to the plot unless it is absolutely necessary. I must leave now before anyone else comes, good luck, and Harry?"

"Yes professor?" Harry replied, looking up from the books.

"Make sure Severus knows that you understand and keep older Sirius calm." She looked almost pleading as she disappeared with another quiet 'pop'.

"Okay then." Harry said slowly sitting on a couch with Teddy.

"I'm with ya there." Ron said sitting beside Luna and Hermione.

There was another quiet 'pop' and twelve people arrived in a huddle on the floor. They watched in amusement as someone in the middle of the group fell, taking everyone down with them.

Harry, still chuckling, stood and walked towards the group, shifting Teddy to his hip. He helped them up in turn and realised what McGonagall meant when she told him to keep them calm, Peter.

"You all need to sit down before everyone else arrives and you fall over again." Harry called to the group at large.

After scrambling up they all sat down in the circle except Bellatrix Lestrange, of course.

"Bellatrix just sit down, for Merlin's sake. It was a simple instruction. I figured you'd be used to those by now." She glared at him for a moment before she sat down, causing people to chuckle again.

"Wow, you actually made my cousin listen." Sirius said in awed shock.

"Honestly Harry, that was pretty cool." A new but completely familiar voice said behind him.

Harry whipped around and hugged him tightly,"Siri."

"Calm down Harry, you'll crush Teddy." Hermione scolded him, also hugging Sirius.

"Sorry Ted." Harry apologised, conjuring his favourite wolf toy and giving it to him.

"I feel a strange misguided need to ask," Another familiar, calm voice interrupted, "the child isn't yours, is he cub?"

"Of course not Remy," Harry said joyously, "not even I'd get away with that."

"Of course not Harry." Neville said sarcastically at the same time as a new voice said "Never underestimate the Harry Potter powers."

"Hey Gred, Forge." Harry greeted quickly before calling out to the group "Can everyone please sit down."

After a few minutes everyone, including Harry, had sat down.

"Great, now Minnie asked me to explain but first I think we should introduce ourselves. So say your name and a nickname in case there are two of you like Sirius and Sirius, Remus and Remus and so on." Harry finished glancing around the room.

"I'll start, Lily Evans."

"Severus Snape or Sev."

"Remus Lupin or Moony, never Remy." He finished glaring at younger Sirius.

"Sirius Black or Padfoot, never Siri." He finished, glaring back at the smirking werewolf.

"James Potter or Prongs."

"Peter Pettigrew or Wormtail."

"Alice Campbell or Ali."

"Frank Longbottom."

"Bellatrix Black."

"I much prefer calling you Bella, can I?" Harry asked, smirking at her playfully.

"No you can't." She growled, glaring at him.

"Great I will then."

"Narcissa Malfoy, Cissa or Cissy."

"See she doesn't mind nicknames, she's nice." Harry announced looking at the sisters seriously.

"Lucius Malfoy."

"Regulus Black."

"Can I call you Reg?" Harry asked watching him carefully as he watched his brother.

"Whatever Potter." Regulus dismissed waving his hand in his direction while continuing his staring contest.

"By the way," Harry cut In before the next person could speak, "could you call the Potters by their first name or given nickname please because it will get so confusing otherwise. There are five of us."

There was a murmer of consent and the circle continued.

"Luna Lovegood."

"Neville Longbottom or Nev." There were a few gasps as Neville said his name Harry groaned, "Merlin if you gasp at every surname I will put silencing charms on you.

"Ginny Weasley or Gin."

"Ron Weasley."

"Hermione Granger.

"Gred and Forge Weasley." The twins announced together.

"Sirius Black, preferably no Siri, only pup can call me that."

"Remus Lupin, preferably no Remy, only cub can call me that."

"Nymphadora Tonks and I will gladly get Ginny to hex you," she grinned, pausing for effect and seeing people shiver, "should you decide to call me by my first name, I prefers Tonks or Dora.

"Harry Potter, Prongslet, Pup and Cub respectively. preferably not the-boy-who-lived, the chosen one, the-boy-who-conquered or any of my many other stupid crappy names, Draco!" He paused looking pointedly at the smirking blond beside him before lifting Teddy and adding. "My godson Teddy who's surname you will have to wait for I'm afraid."

"Draco Malfoy or Dray as Ry likes to call me, oh and look Harry, my introduction took less than three minutes." Draco teased him smirking.

"At least i'm loved." Harry retorted pulling tongues at him.

"Moving on boys." Hermione snapped, glaring at them and making Draco cower.

"Severus Snape."

"Albus Dumbldore."

"James Sirius Potter or Jay." Said a boy that looked exactly like Harry but with Ginny's eyes.

"Lily Luna Potter or Lils." Said the next one, who looked the opposite, exactly like Ginny but with Harry's eyes.

"Albus Severus Potter," Snape gasped at his middle name and turned to look at Harry with a shocked and incredulous look.

"I understand why you did what you did and have a surprising amount of respect for you, despite everything else, no-body could have done what you did." Harry said simply, shrugging, "I also feel the need to apologise for some of the thoughts coming your way in these books, we don't like you much."

"You can all call me Al, by the way." The young Potter who looked exactly like his father, eyes and all, added watching the group carefully.

"Scorpius Malfoy or Scorp."

"Rose Weasley."

"Hugo Weasley."

"Victoire Weasley, Vic or Vicki."

"Teddy but I don't need a nickname, I'd imaging it'd be hard to have a conversation with a boy 16 months old, even if it's me."

"Okay then now for the explanation." Harry took over happily, "We are going to read about our seven years of Hogwarts, for the people in the future so they can learn from mistakes and, people from the past can hopefully change their future. The changes you make wont effect our present though, which is a real damn shame but that's besides the point. I have a few pre book warnings so you can prepare yourself just in-case. Dumbledore, we find out all about your past in the seventh book," Albus closed his eyes and bowed his head slightly so Harry moved on, "Moony we also find out about your furry little problem in the third and no-one from the future cares so don't start." Remus and Sirius chuckled at the affronted look on Moony's face before Harry moved on, "I don't think there's anything else so Bellatrix your starting here you go." She finished throwing the book to Bella who was too shocked to catch it and got hit in the face, causing everyone, particularly Neville to laugh.

Once everyone calmed down, and she had stopped glaring, she opened the book and began.

A.N (Rachael!!) - I hope thats everyone, it should be. Sorry it took so long guys but our ideas kept switching around, I ended up just rewriting the entire chapter. Sorry if you thought it was a little too much with the amount of characters but one or both of us felt that everyone there could benefit from the experience and trust me when I say we cut it down a lot.

Rachael's pen name is....... ImAParrotDontEatMe

Its really random isn't it!!! Lol. Anyway if you cant find it, she is on my favourite authors list so you can go onto her profile from there. Thanks

Sarah.


	2. The Boy Who Lived'

**Ok, I'm gonna skip the whole, 'How are you' and 'I'm good thanks' cos that takes time and energy and some people don't even read the ANs so, you know...**

**Anyway have a nice time until the next chapter **

**Dislaimer: **

**Rach(on hype): Hey, we own all the characters in Harry Potter!!!!! YEY go us!! **

**Me: What the hell Rach? We own nothing, except what the characters say and how they react to the HP stories. Baka. :P **

**Rach: I am NOT an idiot!! But i wanna own Harry Potter! **

**JK: Rachael, calm down, Sarah is right you will not own the Harry Potter characters. However, you can borrow them if you wish, but hurry up!**

**Me: Ok so here is the second chapter...**

"Ok so why do _I _have to start?" Bellatrix asked harshly, just as she was about to read.

"You're the only one who won't be affected by what is in the first chapter." Teddy explained, perhaps a little _too_ harshly.

"Okay, whatever. The chapter is called **The Boy Who Lived**."

"What does that mean?" Padfoot asked.

"Dunno, but I think it has something to do with Harry." Moony mused.

"Well, duh, he said that he doesn't like being called, 'The boy who lived'" said little Snape.

**Mr. and Mrs. Dursley, of number four, Privet Drive, were proud to say that they were perfectly normal, thank you very much. **

"What, why are the Dursley's in here?" Lily asked Harry.

"You should find out. But, if not, I'll tell you." Harry answered.

**They were the last people you'd expect to be involved in anything strange or mysterious, because they just didn't hold with such nonsense. **

**Mr. Dursley was the director of a firm called Grunnings, which made drills. He was a big, beefy man with hardly any neck, although he did have a very large moustache. **

Prongs and Padfoot both laughed at that part, but they were given a look by Lily, telling them to shut up.

**Mrs. Dursley was thin and blonde and had nearly twice the usual amount of neck, which came in very useful as she spent so much of her time craning over garden fences, spying on the neighbours. **

"She hasn't changed much then?" Lily said.

"Nope." Harry replied.

**The Dursleys had a small son called Dudley and in their opinion there was no finer boy anywhere. The Dursleys had everything they wanted, but they also had a secret, and their greatest fear was that somebody would discover it. They didn't think they could bear it if anyone found out about the Potters. **

**Mrs. Potter was Mrs. Dursley's sister, but they hadn't met for several years; in fact, Mrs. Dursley pretended she didn't have a sister,** **because her sister and her good-for-nothing husband were as unDursleyish** **as it was possible to be. The Dursley's shuddered to think what the neighbours would say if the Potters arrived in the street. The Dursley's knew that the Potters had a small son, too, but they had never even seen him. This boy was another good reason for keeping the Potters away; they didn't want Dudley mixing with a child like that.**

"What? What's wrong with Harry?" Prongs asked to nobody in particular.

"Nothing it's just his good-for-nothing Aunt and Uncle trying to look good. No offense Lily." Ginny said.

"It's alright, they are." Lily smiled sadly.

**When Mr. and Mrs. Dursley woke up on the dull, gray Tuesday our story starts, there was nothing about the cloudy sky outside to suggest that strange and mysterious things would soon be happening all over the country. Mr. Dursley hummed as he picked out his most boring tie for work and Mrs. Dursley gossiped away happily as she wrestled a screaming Dudley into his high chair. None of them noticed a large, tawny owl flutter past the window. **

**At half past eight, Mr. Dursley picked up his briefcase, pecked Mrs. Dursley on the cheek, and tried to kiss Dudley good-bye but missed, because Dudley was now having a tantrum and throwing his cereal at the walls.**

"He's still like that now" Harry laughed.

"**Little tyke," chortled Mr. Dursley as he left the house. He got into his car and backed out of number four's drive. **

**It was on the corner of the street that he noticed the first sign of something peculiar — a cat reading a map. **

"I bet you that that cat is an animagus." Padfoot betted.

"Well of _course_ it's going to be an animagus Padfoot, have you ever seen a cat reading a map?" Lily questioned with her eyebrows raised.

He didn't answer.

**For a second, Mr. Dursley didn't realize what he had seen — then he jerked his head around to look again. There was a tabby cat standing on the corner of Privet Drive, but there wasn't a map in sight. What could he have been thinking of? It must have been a trick of the light. Mr. Dursley blinked and stared at the cat. It stared back. As Mr. Dursley drove around the corner and up the road, he watched the cat in his mirror. It was now reading the sign that said Privet Drive — no, **_**looking **_**at the sign; cats couldn't read maps **_**or **_**signs. **

**Mr. Dursley gave himself a little shake and put the cat out of his mind. As he drove toward town he thought of nothing except a large order of drills he was hoping to get that day. **

"Oh, wow, so interesting." Padfoot said sarcastically, making everybody laugh.

**But on the edge of town, drills were driven out of his mind by something else. As he sat in the usual morning traffic jam, he couldn't help noticing that there seemed to be a lot of strangely dressed people about. People in cloaks. **

"Oh, dear," Moony mused.

**Mr. Dursley couldn't bear people who dressed in funny clothes — the getups you saw on young people! He supposed this was some stupid new fashion. He drummed his fingers on the steering wheel and his eyes fell on a huddle of these weirdoes standing quite close by. They were whispering excitedly together.**

The people from the very past frowned slightly at the description.

**Mr. Dursley was enraged to see that a couple of them weren't young at all; why, that man had to be older than he was, and wearing an emerald-green cloak! The nerve of him! But then it struck Mr. Dursley that this was probably some silly stunt —these people were obviously collecting for something… yes, that would be it. **

**The traffic moved on and a few minutes later, Mr. Dursley arrived in the Grunnings parking lot, his mind back on drills. **

"Why? Seriously, this man should get a life!" Fred said.

**Mr. Dursley always sat with his back to the window in his office on the ninth floor. If he hadn't, he might have found it harder to concentrate on drills that morning. **_**He **_**didn't see the owls swooping past in broad daylight, though people down in the street did; they pointed and gazed open-mouthed as owl after owl sped overhead.**

"What happened?" Prongs asked.

**Most of them had never seen an owl even at nighttime. Mr. Dursley, however, had a perfectly normal, owl-free morning. He yelled at five different people. He made several important telephone calls and shouted a bit more. **

**He was in a very good mood until lunchtime, when he thought he'd stretch his legs and walk across the road to buy himself a bun from the bakery. **

**He'd forgotten all about the people in cloaks until he passed a group of them next to the baker's. He eyed them angrily as he passed. He didn't know why, but they made him uneasy. **

**This bunch were whispering excitedly, too, and he couldn't see a single collecting tin. It was on his way back past them, clutching a large doughnut in a bag, that he caught a few words of what they were saying. **

"**The Potters, that's right, that's what I heard —" **

" — **yes, their son, Harry —" **

"What happened?" Prongs asked, more urgently.

Harry smiled innocently making Prongs more agitated.

**Mr. Dursley stopped dead. Fear flooded him. He looked back at the whisperers as if he wanted to say something to them, but thought better of it. **

**He dashed back across the road, hurried up to his office, snapped at his secretary not to disturb him, seized his telephone,** **and had almost finished dialling his home number when he changed his mind. He put the receiver back down and stroked his moustache, thinking… no, he was being stupid.**

"He's always stupid." Harry sniggered.

**Potter wasn't such an unusual name. He was sure there were lots of people called Potter who had a son called Harry. Come to think of it, he wasn't even sure his nephew **_**was **_**called Harry. He'd never even seen the boy. It might have been Harvey. Or Harold. **

**There was no point in worrying Mrs. Dursley; she always got so upset at any mention of her sister. He didn't blame her — if **_**he'd **_**had a sister like that… but all the same, those people in cloaks… **

**He found it a lot harder to concentrate on drills that afternoon and when he left the building at five o'clock, he was still so worried that he walked straight into someone just outside the door. **

"**Sorry," he grunted, as the tiny old man stumbled and almost fell. It was a few seconds before Mr. Dursley realized that the man was wearing a violet cloak. He didn't seem at all upset at being almost knocked to the ground. On the contrary, his face split into a wide smile and he said in a squeaky voice that made passersby stare, "Don't be sorry, my dear sir, for nothing could upset me today! Rejoice, for You-Know-Who has gone at last! Even Muggles like yourself should be celebrating, this happy, happy day!" And the old man hugged Mr. Dursley around the middle and walked off.**

"Voldemort's gone!" Padfoot yelled. Everyone from the past grinned broadly.

**Mr. Dursley stood rooted to the spot. He had been hugged by a complete stranger. He also thought he had been called a Muggle, whatever that was. He was rattled. He hurried to his car and set off for home, hoping he was imagining things, which he had never hoped before, because he didn't approve of imagination. **

"Git." Sirius and Remus said.

**As he pulled into the driveway of number four, the first thing he saw—and it didn't improve his mood — was the tabby cat he'd spotted that morning. **

"Okay, I'm betting that that cat is McGonagall." Padfoot exclaimed.

"You're on." Wormtail betted, "One Galleon."

**It was now sitting on his garden wall. He was sure it was the same one; it had the same markings around its eyes. **

"**Shoo!" said Mr. Dursley loudly.** **The cat didn't move. It just gave him a stern look. **

"That's McGonagall for you." Harry murmured.

**Was this normal cat behavior? Mr. Dursley wondered. Trying to pull himself together, he let himself into the house. He was still determined not to mention anything to his wife. **

**Mrs. Dursley had had a nice, normal day. She told him over dinner all about Mrs. Next Door's problems with her daughter and how Dudley had learned a new word ("Won't!"). Mr. Dursley tried to act normally. When Dudley had been put to bed, he went into the living room in time to catch the last report on the evening news: **

"_**And finally, bird-watchers everywhere have reported that the nation's owls have been behaving very unusually today. Although owls normally hunt at night and are hardly ever seen in daylight, there have been hundreds of sightings of these birds flying in every direction since sunrise. Experts are unable to explain why the owls have suddenly changed their sleeping pattern." The newscaster allowed himself a grin. "Most mysterious. And now, over to Jim McGuffin with the weather. Going to be any more showers of owls tonight, Jim?" **_

"_**Well, Ted," said the weatherman, "I don't know about that, but it's not only the owls that have been acting oddly today. Viewers as far apart as Kent, Yorkshire, and Dundee have been phoning in to tell me that instead of the rain I promised yesterday, they've had a downpour of shooting stars! Perhaps people have been celebrating Bonfire Night early — it's not until next week, folks! But I can promise a wet night tonight." **_

**Mr. Dursley sat frozen in his armchair. Shooting stars all over Britain? Owls flying by daylight? Mysterious people in cloaks all over the place? And a whisper, a whisper about the Potters…**

**Mrs. Dursley came into the living room carrying two cups of tea. It was no good. He'd have to say something to her. He cleared his throat nervously. "Er — Petunia, dear — you haven't heard from your sister lately, have you?"**

"Looks like Petunia is still angry with me." Lily sighed. Prongs moved closer to her.

**As he had expected, Mrs. Dursley looked shocked and angry. After all, they normally pretended she didn't have a sister. **

"**No," she said sharply. "Why?" **

"**Funny stuff on the news," Mr. Dursley mumbled. "Owls… shooting stars… and there were a lot of funny-looking people in town today…" **

"_**So?**_**" snapped Mrs. Dursley. **

"**Well, I just thought… maybe… it was something to do with… you know… **_**her **_**crowd." **

"Her crowd?!" Prongs shouted. "There's nothing wrong with us!"

**Mrs. Dursley sipped her tea through pursed lips. Mr. Dursley wondered whether he dared tell her he'd heard the name "Potter." He decided he didn't dare. Instead he said, as casually as he could, "Their son — he'd be about Dudley's age now, wouldn't he?" **

"**I suppose so," said Mrs. Dursley stiffly. **

"**What's his name again? Howard, isn't it?" **

"**Harry. Nasty, common name, if you ask me."**

"I like the name Harry." Lily smiled, making Harry blush.

"**Oh, yes," said Mr. Dursley, his heart sinking horribly. "Yes, I quite agree." **

**He didn't say another word on the subject as they went upstairs to bed. While Mrs. Dursley was in the bathroom, Mr. Dursley crept to the bedroom window and peered down into the front garden. The cat was still there. It was staring down Privet Drive as though it were waiting for something. **

**Was he imagining things? Could all this have anything to do with the Potters? If it did… if it got out that they were related to a pair of — well, he didn't think he could bear it. **

"What's wrong with being related to wizards, we're great!?" Tonks said.

"Yes, but some Muggles who know about wizards have some very biased views on them, hence the reason that they used to burn them." Dumbledore said.

**The Dursleys got into bed. Mrs. Dursley fell asleep quickly but Mr. Dursley lay awake, turning it all over in his mind. His last, comforting thought before he fell asleep was that even if the Potters **_**were **_**involved, there was no reason for them to come near him and Mrs. Dursley. The Potters knew very well what he and Petunia thought about them and their kind… He couldn't see how he and Petunia could get mixed up in anything that might be going on — he yawned and turned over — it couldn't affect **_**them**_**… **

**How very wrong he was. **

"I _really _want to know what happened." Moony exclaimed.

"All in due time little Remy." Sirius smiled.

**Mr. Dursley might have been drifting into an uneasy sleep, but the cat on the wall outside was showing no sign of sleepiness. It was sitting as still as a statue, its eyes fixed unblinkingly on the far corner of Privet Drive. It didn't so much as quiver when a car door slammed on the next street, nor when two owls swooped overhead. In fact, it was nearly midnight before the cat moved at all.**

"Midnight?! How late does Minnie stay up?" Ginny said.

**A man appeared on the corner the cat had been watching, appeared so suddenly and silently you'd have thought he'd just popped out of the ground. The cat's tail twitched and its eyes narrowed. **

"And enter Professor Dumbledore!" Sirius and Tonks said at the same time.

"Wo, that was creepy." Harry said.

**Nothing like this man had ever been seen on Privet Drive. He was tall, thin, and very old, judging by the silver of his hair and beard, which were both long enough to tuck into his belt. He was wearing long robes, a purple cloak that swept the ground, and high-heeled, buckled boots. His blue eyes were light, bright, and sparkling behind half-moon spectacles and his nose was very long and crooked, as though it had been broken at least twice. This man's name was Albus Dumbledore. **

"Hey Dumbledore!" Prongs and Padfoot said loudly.

**Albus Dumbledore didn't seem to realize that he had just arrived in a street where everything from his name to his boots was unwelcome. He was busy rummaging in his cloak, looking for something. But he did seem to realize he was being watched, because he looked up suddenly at the cat, which was still staring at him from the other end of the street. For some reason, the sight of the cat seemed to amuse him. He chuckled and muttered, "I should have known." **

**He found what he was looking for in his inside pocket. It seemed to be a silver cigarette lighter. He flicked it open, held it up in the air, and clicked it. The nearest street lamp went out with a little pop. **

"Cool, I want one!" Regulus said.

**He clicked it again — the next lamp flickered into darkness. Twelve times he clicked the Put-Outer, until the only lights left on the whole street were two tiny pinpricks in the distance, which were the eyes of the cat watching him. If anyone looked out of their window now, even beady-eyed Mrs. Dursley, they wouldn't be able to see anything that was happening down on the pavement. Dumbledore slipped the Put-Outer back inside his cloak and set off down the street toward number four, where he sat down on the wall next to the cat. He didn't look at it, but after a moment he spoke to it. **

"**Fancy seeing you here, Professor McGonagall." **

"I love your style, Professor." Said Hugo.

"Thank you, Hugo" replied Dumbledore.

**He turned to smile at the tabby, but it had gone. Instead he was smiling at a rather severe-looking woman who was wearing square glasses exactly the shape of the markings the cat had had around its eyes. She, too, was wearing a cloak, an emerald one. Her black hair was drawn into a tight bun. She looked distinctly ruffled. "How did you know it was me?" she asked. **

"Told you it was McGonagall!" shouted Padfoot.

"Pads, we established this a while ago, no shut it, before I shut it for you." Said Prongs in a tone that made Padfoot and Sirius shiver.

"**My dear Professor, I've never seen a cat sit so stiffly." **

"**You'd be stiff if you'd been sitting on a brick wall all day," said Professor McGonagall.**

"Well in all fairness, no one asked her to be there." Padfoot and Sirius commented.

"Padfoot/Sirius will you shut up! Personally I would like to finish this book sometime this year, and you are making it very difficult at the moment!" shouted Prongs and Tonks simultaneously.

"**All day? When you could have been celebrating? I must have passed a dozen feasts and parties on my way here." **

**Professor McGonagall sniffed angrily. **

"**Oh yes, everyone's celebrating, all right," she said impatiently. "You'd think they'd be a bit more careful, but no — even the Muggles have noticed something's going on. It was on their news." **

"It was bad." Commented Remus, Tonks and Dumbledore at the same time. "They were very careless." Sirius added.

**She jerked her head back at the Dursleys' dark living-room window. "I heard it. Flocks of owls… shooting stars… Well, they're not completely stupid. They were bound to notice something. Shooting stars down in Kent — I'll bet that was Dedalus Diggle. He never had much sense." **

"**You can't blame them," said Dumbledore gently. "We've had precious little to celebrate for eleven years." **

"Eleven years. That means that this happens in 1981." Said Lily, shocked at how close it is to her time of 1977.

Everyone from 1977 went very happy, very dramatically.

"**I know that," said Professor McGonagall irritably. "But that's no reason to lose our heads. People are being downright careless, out on the streets in broad daylight, not even dressed in Muggle clothes, swapping rumors." **

**She threw a sharp, sideways glance at Dumbledore here, as though hoping he was going to tell her something, but he didn't, so she went on. "A fine thing it would be if, on the very day You-Know-Who seems to have disappeared at last, the Muggles found out about us all. I suppose he really **_**has **_**gone, Dumbledore?"**

"OMG, really!? He finally dies?" Padfoot, Prongs, Moony, Lily, Regulus, Narcissa all said at the same time.

"You'll find out." Said Harry sadly. 

"**It certainly seems so," said Dumbledore. **

Most people smiled at that.

"**We have much to be thankful for. Would you care for a lemon drop?"**

"**A **_**what**_**?" **

A ripple of sniggers filled the room.

"**A lemon drop. They're a kind of Muggle sweet I'm rather fond of." **

"**No, thank you," said Professor McGonagall coldly, as though she didn't think this was the moment for lemon drops. "As I say, even if You-Know-Who **_**has **_**gone —" **

"**My dear Professor, surely a sensible person like yourself can call him by his name? All this 'You-Know-Who' nonsense — for eleven years I have been trying to persuade people to call him by his proper name: **_**Voldemort**_**."**

Harry noticed that only Pettigrew, Narcissa, Lucius, Bellatrix and Sev flinched at the name, the future Death Eaters. He was happy that no one from his time or from when he was at Hogwarts or the people from the future future winced, not even Neville.

**Professor McGonagall flinched, but Dumbledore, who was unsticking two lemon drops, seemed not to notice. "It all gets so confusing if we keep saying 'You-Know-Who.' I have never seen any reason to be frightened of saying Voldemort's name." "I know you haven't," said Professor McGonagall, sounding half exasperated, half admiring. "But you're different. Everyone knows you're the only one You-Know- oh, all right, **_**Voldemort**_**, was frightened of." **

"**You flatter me," said Dumbledore calmly. "Voldemort had powers I will never have." **

"Maybe that's because you are too noble to use them." Hermione said.

"**Only because you're too — well —**_**noble **_**to use them." **

"No wonder you guys think I'm like McGonagall." Hermione laughed.

"**It's lucky it's dark. I haven't blushed so much since Madam Pomfrey told me she liked my new earmuffs." **

Everyone chuckled apart from Bellatrix and Lucius.

**Professor McGonagall shot a sharp look at Dumbledore and said, "The owls are nothing next to the **_**rumors **_**that are flying around. You know what they're saying? About why he's disappeared? About what finally stopped him?" **

Everyone from the past showed relieved smiles, not including Bellatrix.

**It seemed that Professor McGonagall had reached the point she was most anxious to discuss, the real reason she had been waiting on a cold, hard wall all day, for neither as a cat nor as a woman had she fixed Dumbledore with such a piercing stare as she did now. It was plain that whatever "everyone" was saying, she was not going to believe it until Dumbledore told her it was true. Dumbledore, however, was choosing another lemon drop and did not answer. **

"**What they're **_**saying**_**," she pressed on, "is that last night Voldemort turned up in Godric's Hollow. He went to find the Potters."**

"What?" Prongs said, shocked. Lily paled.

**The rumor is that Lily and James Potter are — are — that they're — **_**dead**_**." **

Bellatrix paused. Even though she didn't really care, she knew that the people from her time needed to take it in. Padfoot and Moony looked like they were about to pass out. Prongs held Lily tighter as she was crying silently.

"How are you not upset by this?" Padfoot demanded to Harry, looking at Lily. Older Sirius just sat there looking back at the memory.

"How could you say that? I've cried for them, for you, for Moony/Remus, Tonks, Fred, Mad-Eye, Dumbledore, Cedric and everyone else that has died because of this war! Come on I even cried for Snape!" Harry said, pointing at Snape. "I've got no more tears left to cry."

Everyone whose names were said looked horrified after finding out that they are dead in the future.

"I'm sorry." Padfoot said, putting on a brave face, but his eyes showed the sadness that he was really feeling. Harry just nodded and looked away.

**Dumbledore bowed his head. Professor McGonagall gasped. **

"**Lily and James… I can't believe it… I didn't want to believe it… Oh, Albus…"**

"Looks like she cares even if she doesn't look like she does." Wormtail said sadly, he had a feeling that this was his fault.

"Personally, I think she cared more about Lily, I mean, Lilyflower here was the only person in Gryffindor that only had a maximum of two detentions in seven years." Sirius said to try and lighten the mood.

**Dumbledore reached out and patted her on the shoulder. "I know… I know…" he said heavily. **

**Professor McGonagall's voice trembled as she went on. "That's not all. They're saying he tried to kill the Potter's son, Harry."**

"NO!" Lily shouted, standing up.

"Chillax, Mum," Harry said, causing Lily to sit back down while Harry smirked." I'm still alive aren't I?"

"Only just." Ginny muttered so only Harry could hear her. He smiled sadly at her and put his arm around her.

**But he couldn't. He couldn't kill that little boy. No one knows why, or how, but they're saying that when he couldn't kill Harry Potter, Voldemort's power somehow broke — and that's why he's gone." **

"YOU KILLED VOLDY!" Padfoot yelled in triumph. Everyone looked thoroughly impressed by Baby Harry's ability.

"Erm...Not quite, but you'll find out later I should think." Harry laughed.

**Dumbledore nodded glumly. **

"**It's — it's **_**true**_**?" faltered Professor McGonagall. "After all he's done… all the people he's killed… he couldn't kill a little boy? It's just astounding… of all the things to stop him… but how in the name of heaven did Harry survive?"**

"Yes, I would like to know that too." Tonks voiced what everyone was thinking apart from Harry and Ginny, he hadn't told Ron and Hermione about him being a Horcrux yet.

"**We can only guess." said Dumbledore. "We may never know." **

"Which means that he does know, he's just not telling McGonagall." George smiled, looking at his Professor.

Dumbledore's eyes twinkled mischievously, which is a scary thought.

**Professor McGonagall pulled out a lace handkerchief and dabbed at her eyes beneath her spectacles. Dumbledore gave a great sniff as he took a golden watch from his pocket and examined it. It was a very odd watch. It had twelve hands but no numbers; instead, little planets were moving around the edge. It must have made sense to Dumbledore, though, because he put it back in his pocket and said, "Hagrid's late. I suppose it was he who told you I'd be here, by the way?" **

"**Yes," said Professor McGonagall. "And I don't suppose you're going to tell me **_**why **_**you're here, of all places?" **

"**I've come to bring Harry to his aunt and uncle. They're the only family he has left now." **

There was a stunned silence.

"WHAT?" Everyone shouted.

"How could he be the only one left? I have loads of 2nd cousins!" Prongs cried.

"I don't know" Harry explained cleverly.

"**You don't mean – you **_**can't **_**mean the people who live **_**here**_**?" cried Professor McGonagall, jumping to her feet and pointing at number four. "Dumbledore — you can't. I've been watching them all day. You couldn't find two people who are less like us. And they've got this son — I saw him kicking his mother all the way up the street, screaming for sweets. Harry Potter come and live here!" **

"**It's the best place for him," said Dumbledore firmly. "His aunt and uncle will be able to explain everything to him when he's older. I've written them a letter." **

"Seriously? A letter? How could you explain all of that in a letter?" Hermione exclaimed.

"**A letter?" repeated Professor McGonagall faintly, sitting back down on the wall. "Really, Dumbledore, you think you can explain all this in a letter?"**

"Looks like I am like McGonagall." Hermione laughed. Harry and Ron smirked.

**These people will never understand him! He'll be famous — a legend — I wouldn't be surprised if today was known as Harry Potter day in the future — there will be books written about Harry — every child in our world will know his name!" **

"Why would you take him to that God forsaken place?" Severus asked.

"Well, I would of thought that was obvious." Remus said, smiling, "His father was an attention-seeking git, so he was probably just taking precautions. It would probably also turn his head, being that famous."

"Hey! I thought you were my friend." Prongs said, looking at Remus with puppy eyes. Remus just laughed along with Sirius, Tonks and everybody else.

"Prongs, he only said the truth." Sirius laughed.

"You're the one to talk, Padfoot." Prongs said

"**Exactly." said Dumbledore, looking very seriously over the top of his half-moon glasses. "It would be enough to turn any boy's head. Famous before he can walk and talk! Famous for something he won't even remember! Can you see how much better off he'll be, growing up away from all that until he's ready to take it?" **

**Professor McGonagall opened her mouth, changed her mind, swallowed, and then said, "Yes — yes, you're right, of course. But how is the boy getting here, Dumbledore?" She eyed his cloak suddenly as though she thought he might be hiding Harry underneath it.**

Lily glared at the said man, "You better not be" she said coldly.

"**Hagrid's bringing him." **

"**You think it —**_**wise **_**— to trust Hagrid with something as important as this?"**

"I trust Hagrid with my life." Harry said.

"**I would trust Hagrid with my life," said Dumbledore. **

"Dumbledore's man through and through." Harry mumbled, smirking.

"**I'm not saying his heart isn't in the right place," said Professor McGonagall grudgingly, "but you can't pretend he's not careless. He does tend to — what was that?" **

**A low rumbling sound had broken the silence around them. It grew steadily louder as they looked up and down the street for some sign of a headlight; it swelled to a roar as they both looked up at the sky — and a huge motorcycle fell out of the air and landed on the road in front of them. **

"OMG, I want one!" Prongs, Padfoot, Regulus, Frank, Draco, Wormtail, Teddy, Hugo, James, Al, Fred and George shouted at the same time, looking at Harry expectantly.

"You'll find out whose it is in a few minutes." Harry laughed.

"I'll bet you a alleon it's mine" Padfoot betted.

"Alright, you're on." Frank agreed.

**If the motorcycle was huge, it was nothing to the man sitting astride it. He was almost twice as tall as a normal man and at least five times as wide. He looked simply too big to be allowed, and so **_**wild **_**— long tangles of bushy black hair and beard hid most of his face, he had hands the size of trash can lids, and his feet in their leather boots were like baby dolphins. In his vast, muscular arms he was holding a bundle of blankets.**

"Why?" Al asked.

"It's Dad you dolt." James smacked him around the head, shaking his head at his stupidity.

"**Hagrid," said Dumbledore, sounding relieved. "At last. And where did you get that motorcycle?" **

"**Borrowed it, Professor Dumbledore, sir," said the giant, climbing carefully off the motorcycle as he spoke. "Young Sirius Black lent it to me. I've got him, sir."**

"Alright." Padfoot smirked appreciated at his buy, "Gimmee that Galleon." He told Frank.

"Can't believe you bought a motorbike." Lucius shook his head.

"**No problems, were there?" **

"**No, sir — house was almost destroyed, but I got him out all right before the Muggles started swarmin' around. He fell asleep as we was flyin' over Bristol."**

"Awww." All the girls cooed. Harry turned so red he could be a Weasley.

**Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall bent forward over the bundle of blankets. Inside, just visible, was a baby boy, fast asleep. Under a tuft of jet-black hair over his forehead they could see a curiously shaped cut, like a bolt of lightning.**

"Awww, you were so cute as a baby." Sirius mocked.

"Awesome scar you got there." Wormtail said, noticing the scar on the eighteen year olds head.

Harry shifted uncomfortably.

"**Is that where —?" whispered Professor McGonagall. **

"**Yes," said Dumbledore. "He'll have that scar forever." **

"**Couldn't you do something about it, Dumbledore?" **

"**Even if I could, I wouldn't. Scars can come in handy. I have one myself above my left knee that is a perfect map of the London Underground. Well — give him here, Hagrid — we'd better get this over with." **

**Dumbledore took Harry in his arms and turned toward the Dursleys' house. **

"**Could I — could I say good-bye to him, sir?" asked Hagrid. He bent his great, shaggy head over Harry and gave him what must have been a very scratchy, whiskery kiss. Then, suddenly, Hagrid let out a howl like a wounded dog. **

"Now that is just offensive!" Sirius and Padfoot said, pointing at the book.

Moony and Remus elbowed them in the ribs to shut them up.

"Why is it offensive?" Alice asked but no one answered.

"**Shhh!" hissed Professor McGonagall, "You'll wake the Muggles!" **

"**S-s-sorry," sobbed Hagrid, taking out a large, spotted handkerchief and burying his face in it. "But I c-c-can't stand it —Lily an' James dead — an' poor little Harry off ter live with Muggles —" **

"**Yes, yes, it's all very sad, but get a grip on yourself, Hagrid, or we'll be found," Professor McGonagall whispered, patting Hagrid gingerly on the arm as Dumbledore stepped over the low garden wall and walked to the front door. He laid Harry gently on the doorstep, took a letter out of his cloak, tucked it inside Harry's blankets, and then came back to the other two.**

"Did you just leave Harry on the doorstep?" Lily and Ginny asked, their anger rising.

"Well, I put a few charms on him so he would be warm." Dumbledore explained.

**For a full minute the three of them stood and looked at the little bundle; Hagrid's shoulders shook, Professor McGonagall blinked furiously, and the twinkling light that usually shone from Dumbledore's eyes seemed to have gone out. **

"**Well," said Dumbledore finally, "that's that. We've no business staying here. We may as well go and join the celebrations." **

"**Yeah," said Hagrid in a very muffled voice, "I best get this bike away. G'night, Professor McGonagall — Professor Dumbledore, sir." **

**Wiping his streaming eyes on his jacket sleeve, Hagrid swung himself onto the motorcycle and kicked the engine into life; with a roar it rose into the air and off into the night. **

"Dramatic exit." Ron commented.

"**I shall see you soon, I expect, Professor McGonagall," said Dumbledore, nodding to her. Professor McGonagall blew her nose in reply. **

**Dumbledore turned and walked back down the street. On the corner he stopped and took out the silver Put-Outer. He clicked it once, and twelve balls of light sped back to their street lamps so that Privet Drive glowed suddenly orange and he could make out a tabby cat slinking around the corner at the other end of the street. He could just see the bundle of blankets on the step of number four. **

"**Good luck, Harry," he murmured. He turned on his heel and with a swish of his cloak, he was gone. **

"God knows that you needed it." Dumbledore said looking at Harry.

**A breeze ruffled the neat hedges of Privet Drive, which lay silent and tidy under the inky sky, the very last place you would expect astonishing things to happen. Harry Potter rolled over inside his blankets without waking up. One small hand closed on the letter beside him and he slept on, not knowing he was special, not knowing he was famous, not knowing he would be woken in a few hours' time by Mrs. Dursley's scream as she opened the front door to put out the milk bottles, nor that he would spend the next few weeks being prodded and pinched by his cousin Dudley… He couldn't know that at this very moment, people meeting in secret all over the country were holding up their glasses and saying in hushed voices: "To Harry Potter — the boy who lived!"**

Glasses appeared in front of everyone full of Firewhisky.

"To the Boy-Who-Lived!" Sirus and Remus cheered, raisng their glasses and drinking it whole.

"Hang on, where am I? I mean, no offense, but why would I give my bike to Hagrid and... am I your godfather?" Padfoot asked, frowning.

"You'll find out in the third book." Teddy told him, "And yes, you are Uncle Harry's godfather."

Padfoot and Sirius' faces visibly brightened at this.

"Well that's the end of the chapter. Who's reading next?" Bellatrix said, being strangely polite.

**A/N Okay that's the second chapter, written by me, dolphin35366, the next chapter will be written by ImAParrotDontEatMe or Rachael. This is also published on her profile as well. I hope this chapter was okay cause I'm not as good writer as Rachael, but I hope that you enjoyed it.**

**Please review, we love your comments :)**

**Sarah/dolphin35366**


	3. The vanishing Glass

All A/Ns from Rachael's POV/ImAParrotDontEatMe

Er...Hey, you kinda run out of things to say in these things after a while. 

Sirius: *looking around* Where am I?

Me: My bedroom.

Sirius: And whys that. *Wiggles eyebrows suggestively*

Me: Behave Sirius, I borrowed you from J.K.R and now you need to sit still and read this book, don't forget to be expressive with what you thinks cause I'm writing it down.

"Now my mind is an open book, and my heart is an open wound, now my life is an open soul for all to see.."-Bonus track-Good Charlotte

"(parcel tongue)"

"**The Vanishing Glass,"** Harry read bursting with suppressed laughter.

"Harry is this when-?" Draco asked laughing.

"Ye." Harry replied letting go of his laughter as Draco, Ron, Hermione and Ted burst out laughing.

"**Nearly ten years had passed since the Dursleys had woken up to find their nephew on the front step, but Privet Drive had hardly changed at all. The sun rose on the same tidy front gardens and lit up the brass number four on the Dursleys' front door; it crept into their living room, which was almost exactly the same as it had been on the night when Mr. Dursley had seen that fateful news report about the owls. Only the photographs on the mantelpiece really showed how much time had passed. Ten years ago, there had been lots of pictures of what looked like a large pink beach ball wearing different-coloured bonnets **

"Poor kid." Draco Said, understanding after being babied by his own mother.

**but Dudley Dursley was no longer a baby,**

"I should hope not." Lucius drawled in his 'I'm a pure-blood and bored voice'.

**and now the photographs showed a large blond boy riding his first bicycle, on a carousel at the fair, playing a computer game with his father, being hugged and kissed by his mother. The room held no sign at all that another boy lived in the house, too.**

"Does that mean I came to get you?" Padfoot asked hopefully.

**Yet Harry Potter was still there,**

"Damn" He muttered resentful but worried of what happened to him.

**asleep at the moment, but not for long. His Aunt Petunia was awake and it was her shrill voice that made the first noise of the day.**

"Joy" Snape, Sev and Lily muttered, knowing what it was like to be woken by that voice.

"**Up! Get up! Now!" **

**Harry woke with a start. His aunt rapped on the door again. **

"**Up!" she screeched. Harry heard her walking toward the kitchen and then the sound of the frying pan being put on the stove. He rolled onto his back and tried to remember the dream he had been having. It had been a good one. There had been a flying motorcycle in it. He had a funny feeling he'd had the same dream before.**

"It's a memory." Moony and Remus said together.

"I know." Harry said as if he were talking to Teddy.

**His aunt was back outside the door. **

"**Are you up yet?" she demanded. **

"**Nearly," said Harry. **

"**Well, get a move on, I want you to look after the bacon. And don't you dare let it burn, I want everything perfect on Duddy's birthday." **

**Harry groaned.**

"We would groan too, mate." Ron said sympathetically.

"**What did you say?" his aunt snapped through the door. **

"**Nothing, nothing…" **

**Dudley's birthday — how could he have forgotten? **

"Quite easily really." Harry muttered, not looking forward to the revelation coming soon.

**Harry got slowly out of bed and started looking for socks. He found a pair under his bed and, after pulling a spider**

Narcissa and Ron both shuddered and glared at Harry for mentioning them. Harry ignored them, gave Teddy and the book to Draco who was beside him, and turned into his animagus form, a black wolf. Teddy squealed happily, clapping his hands. Draco smiled and placed the baby on the wolfs back, holding on until Teddy took handfuls of hair and tugged on them causing Harry to start wandering around.

**off one of them, put them on. Harry was used to spiders, because the cupboard under the stairs was full of them, and that was where he slept.**

"WHAT!" The entire room shouted startling Teddy who let go and began to fall. Harry feeling Teddy fall rolled over, changing back at the same time, and caught the laughing baby.

Looking around Harry noticed that the room was completely silent. This wasn't the reaction he was expecting.

"You should be more careful with Teddy." Lily scolded, hand over her heart.

"You guys were the ones that scared him, besides Siri did it with me all the time when I was a baby."

"So that's where the brain cells went?" Draco asked mock seriously.

"I'd say of course but I'm pretty sure I should be offended by that." Harry said standing up and sitting back down next to Draco.

"Why didn't you tell me?" The blond asked quietly, playing with Teddy's hair. "You know Mum wanted you to come stay with us, especially with the bruises, not to mention the manor is protected against Voldemort himself, how else would my father survive?" Draco laughed bitterly, it really upset him that he didn't trust him with this.

"How about I tell you before we go to sleep later, and right now you protect me from the wrath of angry Cissy cause she looks murderous and it's likely to be worse back in our time." Harry negotiated glancing warily at the blonds mother.

"Fine tell me later and if you keep reading she wont do anything." Draco handed Harry the book and he began reading again.

**When he was dressed he went down the hall into the kitchen. The table was almost hidden beneath all Dudley's birthday presents. It looked as though Dudley had gotten the new computer he wanted, not to mention the second television and the racing bike.**

**Exactly why Dudley wanted a racing bike was a mystery to Harry, as Dudley was very fat and hated exercise**

A few people snorted while others, like Snape, Lucius and Regulus just rolled their eyes.

**unless of course it involved punching somebody.**

"That had better not be you." Cissy and Lily said together glaring at the book.

**Dudley's favourite punching bag was Harry, **

"Hey Pads,-" Prongs started looking at his best friend.

"I'm on it." He replied scribbling on a piece of parchment.

**but he couldn't often catch him. Harry didn't look it, but he was very fast**.

"You really didn't look it." Ron told him, grinning.

**Perhaps it had something to do with living in a dark cupboard, but Harry had always been small and skinny for his age. **

"No, Prongs was like that too." Moony said happily, munching on a piece of chocolate.

**He looked even smaller and skinnier than he really was because all he had to wear were old clothes of Dudley's, and Dudley was about four times bigger than he was. Harry had a thin face, knobby knees, black hair,**

"That's you Albus, they were right when they said you looked most like dad." Lils said happily patting Al on the head.

**and bright green eyes.**

"See, you even got Grandma's eyes." James said watching his grandparents cheerfully.

**He wore round glasses held together with a lot of Scotch tape because of all the times Dudley had punched him on the nose. The only thing Harry liked about his own appearance was a very thin scar on his forehead that was shaped like a bolt of lightning.**

"But you hate your scar." Neville said looking at Harry.

"Now I do, but know I know what it is, and what it is, is a pain in the forehead." Harry explained cheerfully, bouncing Teddy on his lap.

**He had had it as long as he could remember, and the first question he could ever remember asking his Aunt Petunia was how he had gotten it. **

"**In the car crash when your parents died," she had said.**

"**And don't ask questions." **

"Well how else do you learn?" Hermione asked, offended by the rule.

**Don't ask questions — that was the first rule for a quiet life with the Dursleys.**

**Uncle Vernon entered the kitchen as Harry was turning over the bacon. **

"**Comb your hair!" **

"Wont work." All the potter men muttered, much to the amusement of everyone else.

**he barked, by way of a morning greeting.**

**About once a week, Uncle Vernon looked over the top of his newspaper and shouted that Harry needed a haircut. Harry must have had more haircuts than the rest of the boys in his class put together, but it made no difference, his hair simply grew that way — all over the place.**

"Ye, genetics." Moony said, still munching on chocolate.

"Shame really, he just had to look like his father." Padfoot added mock sadly.

"Hey, what's wrong with looking like his father.

"Nothing dear." Lily said consolingly, patting him on the arm.

**Harry was frying eggs by the time Dudley arrived in the kitchen with his mother. Dudley looked a lot like Uncle Vernon. He had a large pink face, not much neck, small, watery blue eyes, and thick blond hair that lay smoothly on his thick, fat head. **

**Aunt Petunia often said that Dudley looked like a baby angel — Harry often said that Dudley looked like a pig in a wig.**

Everyone laughed at this description, even Bella to most peoples surprise.

**Harry put the plates of egg and bacon on the table, which was difficult as there wasn't much room. Dudley, meanwhile, was counting his presents. His face fell. **

"**Thirty-six," **

"What, that's more than me!" Regulus, Lucius and Draco shouted in surprise.

**he said, looking up at his mother and father. "That's two less than last year." **

"**Darling, you haven't counted Auntie Marge's present, see, it's here under this big one from Mummy and Daddy." **

The three generations of Marauders sniggered quietly. (A.N Gen 1 Moony, Padfoot, Prongs and counterparts (I don't like Peter). Gen 2 The twins and Harry. Gen 3 James, Fred, Rose and Scorp.)

"**All right, thirty-seven then," said Dudley, going red in the face. Harry, who could see a huge Dudley tantrum coming on, began wolfing down his bacon as fast as possible in case Dudley turned the table over. **

"Ah," Hermione said, as if that explained everything, "that's why you always eat so quickly."

**Aunt Petunia obviously scented danger, too, because she said quickly, "And we'll buy you another two presents while we're out today. How's that, popkin? Two more presents. Is that all right?" **

**Dudley thought for a moment. It looked like hard work. Finally he said slowly, "So I'll have thirty… thirty…" **

"Oh merlin, the thing cant count." Narcissa muttered in disgust, with many agreeing nods.

"**Thirty-nine, sweetums," said Aunt Petunia.**

"**Oh." Dudley sat down heavily and grabbed the nearest parcel. "All right then." **

**Uncle Vernon chuckled. **

"**Little tyke**

Snorts filled the room at anyone _ever _calling Dudley little.

**wants his money's worth, just like his father. 'Atta boy, Dudley!" He ruffled Dudley's hair. **

**At that moment the telephone rang and Aunt Petunia went to answer it while Harry and Uncle Vernon watched Dudley unwrap the racing bike, a video camera, a remote control air plane, sixteen new computer games, and a VCR.**

"I dunno what they are but they sound expensive." Many pure-bloods muttered exchanging glances while Snape surreptitiously watched Harry. He had been wrong about the boy, he wasn't his father at all, not that he'd ever say that out loud.

**He was ripping the paper off a gold wristwatch when Aunt Petunia came back from the telephone looking both angry and worried. **

"**Bad news, Vernon," she said. "Mrs. Figg's broken her leg. She can't take him."**

"Do they always talk about you like that," Lily asked looking at Harry sadly.

"Mostly but you get used to it." Harry shrugged.

"You shouldn't have to." Sev snarled looking furious.

Ignoring him Harry looked back to the book and continued.

**She jerked her head in Harry's direction. **

**Dudley's mouth fell open in horror, but Harry's heart gave a leap. Every year on Dudley's birthday, his parents took him and a friend out for the day, to adventure parks, hamburger restaurants, or the movies. Every year, Harry was left behind with Mrs. Figg, a mad old lady who lived two streets away. Harry hated it there. The whole house smelled of cabbage and Mrs. Figg made him look at photographs of all the cats she'd ever owned. **

"Lovely." Tonks muttered sarcastically glaring at the book.

"**Now what?" said Aunt Petunia, looking furiously at Harry as though he'd planned this. Harry knew he ought to feel sorry that Mrs. Figg had broken her leg, but it wasn't easy when he reminded himself it would be a whole year before he had to look at Tibbles, Snowy, Mr. Paws, and Tufty again. **

"I hate cats." Sirius and Padfoot sad together.

"We know, get over it." Remus and Moony said looking at them pointedly.

Chuckling slightly at the four Harry continued.

"**We could phone Marge," Uncle Vernon suggested. **

"**Don't be silly, Vernon, she hates the boy."**

**The Dursleys often spoke about Harry like this, as though he wasn't there — or rather, as though he was something very nasty that couldn't understand them, like a slug.**

"**What about what's-her-name, your friend — Yvonne?"**

"She's still friends with _her." _Snape, Sev and Lily said, looking half shocked, half horrified,

"**On vacation in Majorca," snapped Aunt Petunia. **

"**You could just leave me here," Harry put in hopefully (he'd be able to watch what he wanted on television for a change and maybe even have a go on Dudley's computer).**

"Not likely dad." Jay and Al muttered glaring at the book fiercely.

**Aunt Petunia looked as though she'd just swallowed a lemon. **

"**And come back and find the house in ruins?" she snarled.**

**He didn't blow it up moldywart did**

"**I won't blow up the house," said Harry, but they weren't listening.**

"**I suppose we could take him to the zoo," said Aunt Petunia slowly, "… and leave him in the car…" **

"**That car's new, he's not sitting in it alone…" **

**Dudley began to cry loudly. **

"Baby." Reg and Paddy snorted, before glancing at each and bursting out laughing.

"I don't want to know." Remus muttered, rubbing his eyes and glancing warily at Sirius who had started sniggering too.

**In fact, he wasn't really crying — it had been years since he'd really cried — but he knew that if he screwed up his face and wailed, his mother would give him anything he wanted. **

"**Dinky Duddydums, **

Snickers ran around the room while Dumbledore's eyes twinkled merrily and Harry read on.

**don't cry, Mummy won't let him spoil your special day!" she cried, flinging her arms around him. **

"**I… don't… want… him… t-t-to come!" Dudley yelled between huge, pretend sobs. "He always sp-spoils everything!" He shot Harry a nasty grin through the gap in his mother's arms. **

**Just then, the doorbell rang — "Oh, good Lord, they're here!" said Aunt Petunia frantically — and a moment later, Dudley's best friend, Piers Polkis, walked in with his mother. **

**Piers was a scrawny boy with a face like a rat. He was usually the one who held people's arms behind their backs while Dudley hit them. Dudley stopped pretending to cry at once. **

**Half an hour later, Harry, who couldn't believe his luck, was sitting in the back of the Dursleys' car with Piers and Dudley, on the way to the zoo for the first time in his life. His aunt and uncle hadn't been able to think of anything else to do with him, but before they'd left, Uncle Vernon had taken Harry aside.**

"**I'm warning you," he had said, putting his large purple face right up close to Harry's, **

"Ewe images." Neville muttered closing his eyes tightly.

"Ewe Nev!" Draco and Luna called in disgust while Harry hid his head in Teddy's back.

"**I'm warning you now, boy — any funny business, anything at all — and you'll be in that cupboard from now until Christmas." **

"Child abuse." Lucius snarled scaring Pettigrew who was sat near him.

"**I'm not going to do anything," said Harry, "honestly…" **

**But Uncle Vernon didn't believe him. No one ever did.**

**The problem was, strange things often happened around Harry and it was just no good telling the Dursleys he didn't make them happen. **

**Once, Aunt Petunia, tired of Harry coming back from the barbers looking as though he hadn't been at all, had taken a pair of kitchen scissors and cut his hair so short he was almost bald except for his bangs, which she left "to hide that horrible scar." Dudley had laughed himself silly at Harry, who spent a sleepless night imagining school the next day, where he was already laughed at for his baggy clothes and taped glasses.**

**Next morning, however, he had gotten up to find his hair exactly as it had been before Aunt Petunia had sheared it off. **

"Well done Harry." The marauders cheered loudly.

"That's pretty powerful." Dumbledore told him, still twinkling.

**He had been given a week in his cupboard for this,**

"Why she would know that its accidental magic." Lily said in exasperation.

"Lily that is why." Sev muttered rubbing her back soothingly.

**even though he had tried to explain that he couldn't explain how it had grown back so quickly. **

**Another time, Aunt Petunia had been trying to force him into a revolting old sweater of Dudley's (brown with orange puff balls).**

"That's gross." Bella and Cissy said looking disgusted.

**The harder she tried to pull it over his head, the smaller it seemed to become, until finally it might have fitted a hand puppet, but certainly wouldn't fit Harry. **

**Aunt Petunia had decided it must have shrunk in the wash and, to his great relief, Harry wasn't punished. **

"Oh thank Merlin." everyone sighed, happy Harry wasn't punished.

**On the other hand, he'd gotten into terrible trouble for being found on the roof of the school kitchens. Dudley's gang had been chasing him as usual when, as much to Harry's surprise as anyone else's, there he was sitting on the chimney. **

"That's impressive." Snape muttered almost distractedly as he watched Harry.

**The Dursleys had received a very angry letter from Harry's headmistress telling them Harry had been climbing school buildings. But all he'd tried to do (as he shouted at Uncle Vernon through the locked door of his cupboard) was jump behind the big trash cans outside the kitchen doors. Harry supposed that the wind must have caught him in mid-jump. **

"Oh very likely." Regulus snorted while Padfoot tried not to laugh.

**But today, nothing was going to go wrong. It was even worth being with Dudley and Piers to be spending the day somewhere that wasn't school, his cupboard, or Mrs. Figg's cabbage-smelling living room. **

**While he drove, Uncle Vernon complained to Aunt Petunia. He liked to complain about things: people at work, Harry, the council, Harry, the bank, and Harry were just a few of his favourite subjects. This morning, it was motorcycles.**

"But Motorbikes are awesome." Sirius shouted bumping fists with his younger self.

"Paddy," Teddy said in a scarily sweet voice, "Jay, Al and Lils don't need any more influencing than Uncle George, please stop giving them ideas."

"But Teddy you give us ideas too." Lils told him blinking innocently.

"You and Uncle George were the first people that helped us prank anyone." Al added grinning.

"Mum was furious, Uncle George was terrified and dad defended you telling her it was in your blood." Jay told them through his fit of laughter.

"… **roaring along like maniacs, the young hoodlums," he said, as a motorcycle overtook them. **

"**I had a dream about a motorcycle," said Harry, remembering suddenly. "It was flying." **

**Uncle Vernon nearly crashed into the car in front. He turned right around in his seat and yelled at Harry, his face like a gigantic beet with a moustache: "MOTORCYCLES DON'T FLY!"**

"Mine does." Sirius shouted, ducking Remus' hand as he reached to smack him.

**Dudley and Piers sniggered. **

"**I know they don't," said Harry. "It was only a dream." **

**But he wished he hadn't said anything. If there was one thing the Dursleys hated even more than his asking questions, it was his talking about anything acting in a way it shouldn't, no matter if it was in a dream or even a cartoon — they seemed to think he might get dangerous ideas. **

"Oh and he really needs help with that," Hermione muttered smiling fondly at Harry.

**It was a very sunny Saturday and the zoo was crowded with families. The Dursleys bought Dudley and Piers large chocolate ice creams at the entrance and then, because the smiling lady in the van had asked Harry what he wanted before they could hurry him away, they bought him a cheap lemon ice pop. **

"They're pretty nice." Lily said, still looking sad.

**It wasn't bad, either, Harry thought, licking it as they watched a gorilla scratching its head who looked remarkably like Dudley, except that it wasn't blond. **

"Don't insult the gorilla." Tonks said grinning broadly.

**Harry had the best morning he'd had in a long time. He was careful to walk a little way apart from the Dursleys so that Dudley and Piers, who were starting to get bored with the animals by lunchtime, wouldn't fall back on their favourite hobby of hitting him. **

"Good idea" Peter muttered rubbing his left arm subconsciously.

**They ate in the zoo restaurant, and when Dudley had a tantrum because his knickerbocker glory didn't have enough ice cream on top, Uncle Vernon bought him another one and Harry was allowed to finish the first. **

"Why?" Cissy asked narrowing her eyes in suspicion.

**Harry felt, afterwards, that he should have known it was all too good to last.**

"Shame really." Harry muttered, shifting Teddy off his dead leg onto his other.

**After lunch they went to the reptile house. It was cool and dark in there, with lit windows all along the walls. Behind the glass, all sorts of lizards and snakes were crawling and slithering over bits of wood and stone. Dudley and Piers wanted to see huge, poisonous cobras and thick, man-crushing pythons. Dudley quickly found the largest snake in the place. It could have wrapped its body twice around Uncle Vernon's car and crushed it into a trash can — but at the moment it didn't look in the mood. In fact, it was fast asleep. **

**Dudley stood with his nose pressed against the glass, staring at the glistening brown coils. **

"**Make it move," he whined at his father. Uncle Vernon tapped on the glass, but the snake didn't budge. **

"**Do it again," Dudley ordered. Uncle Vernon rapped the glass smartly with his knuckles, but the snake just snoozed on. **

"**This is boring," Dudley moaned. He shuffled away. **

**Harry moved in front of the tank and looked intently at the snake. He wouldn't have been surprised if it had died of boredom itself — no company except stupid people drumming their fingers on the glass trying to disturb it all day long. It was worse than having a cupboard as a bedroom, where the only visitor was Aunt Petunia hammering on the door to wake you up; at least he got to visit the rest of the house. **

"When your not locked in." Moony snarled, angrily glaring at the book.

**The snake suddenly opened its beady eyes. Slowly, very slowly, it raised its head until its eyes were on a level with Harry's. It winked.**

"What?" The people from the past asked simultaneously.

**Harry stared. Then he looked quickly around to see if anyone was watching. They weren't. He looked back at the snake and winked, too. **

"Why did you do that?" Draco asked curiously.

"Dunno really." Harry shrugged turning back to the book.

**The snake jerked its head toward Uncle Vernon and Dudley, then raised its eyes to the ceiling. It gave Harry a look that said quite plainly: **"**I get that all the time." **

"Oh merlin your a parcel mouth." Prongs and Padfoot gasped together.

"(no really)" Harry hissed sarcastically, well as sarcastic as a snake could sound.

"What?" Moony asked looking fairly interested.

"He said 'no really'" Narcissa explained rolling her eyes.

"Wait your a parcel-mouth?" Regulus asked spinning to face her.

"(no really)" She hissed raising an eyebrow.

Harry and a few others who recognised what she said to be the same as what Harry said sniggered.

"**I know," Harry murmured through the glass, though he wasn't sure the snake could hear him. "It must be really annoying." The snake nodded vigorously. **

"Alrighty then, little odd, but what the hell." Prongs said grinning at Harry.

"**Where do you come from, anyway?" Harry asked. **

**The snake jabbed its tail at a little sign next to the glass. Harry peered at it. **

**Boa Constrictor, Brazil. **

"**Was it nice there?" **

**The boa constrictor jabbed its tail at the sign again and Harry read on: This specimen was bred in the zoo. "Oh, I see — so you've never been to Brazil?"**

**As the snake shook its head, a deafening shout behind Harry made both of them jump. "DUDLEY! MR. DURSLEY! COME AND LOOK AT THIS SNAKE! YOU WON'T BELIEVE WHAT IT'S DOING!" **

**Dudley came waddling toward them as fast as he could. **

"I like penguins." Dumbldore said randomly, pulling apart two sherbet lemons.

"**Out of the way, you," he said, punching Harry in the ribs. Caught by surprise, Harry fell hard on the concrete floor. **

"Ouch." Sirius winced, rubbing his ribs in remembrance of a similar incident.

**What came next happened so fast no one saw how it happened — one second, Piers and Dudley were leaning right up close to the glass, the next, they had leapt back with howls of horror. **

"Why, what happened?" Lily and Alice asked panicking.

"I hope it hurts." Bella muttered, her hate for the people in the room overthrown buy her hate for the muggles.

**Harry sat up and gasped; the glass front of the boa constrictor's tank had vanished.**

"Cool." All three generations of marauders shouted, grinning madly.

**The great snake was uncoiling itself rapidly, slithering out onto the floor. People throughout the reptile house screamed and started running for the exits. **

**As the snake slid swiftly past him, Harry could have sworn a low, hissing voice said, "Brazil, here I come… Thanksss, amigo." **

**The keeper of the reptile house was in shock. **

"**But the glass," he kept saying, "where did the glass go?" **

"It vanished, twit." Frank muttered sniggering.

**The zoo director himself made Aunt Petunia a cup of strong, sweet tea while he apologized over and over again. Piers and Dudley could only gibber. As far as Harry had seen, the snake hadn't done anything except snap playfully at their heels as it passed, but by the time they were all back in Uncle Vernon's car, Dudley was telling them how it had nearly bitten off his leg, while Piers was swearing it had tried to squeeze him to death. But worst of all, for Harry at least, was Piers calming down enough to say, "Harry was talking to it, weren't you, Harry?"**

"Evil git why rat on him." Teddy muttered glaring at Pettigrew.

**Uncle Vernon waited until Piers was safely out of the house before starting on Harry. He was so angry he could hardly speak. He managed to say, "Go — cupboard — stay — no meals,"**

"Child abuse." Cissy said indignantly looking at Harry critically.

**before he collapsed into a chair, and Aunt Petunia had to run and get him a large brandy. **

**Harry lay in his dark cupboard much later, wishing he had a watch. He didn't know what time it was and he couldn't be sure the Dursleys were asleep yet. Until they were, he couldn't risk sneaking to the kitchen for some food. **

"Oh no, he has marauder blood." Lily muttered sadly before glaring at the book. "On second thoughts, go ahead."

**He'd lived with the Dursleys almost ten years, ten miserable years, as long as he could remember, ever since he'd been a baby and his parents had died in that car crash. He couldn't remember being in the car when his parents had died. Sometimes, when he strained his memory during long hours in his cupboard, he came up with a strange vision: a blinding flash of green light and a burning pain on his forehead. **

"You survive the avada kadavara." Moony said in shock.

"I didn't know you remembered that much mate." Ron said looking sympathetic.

**This, he supposed, was the crash, though he couldn't imagine where all the green light came from. He couldn't remember his parents at all. **

"Which is why I'm here." Harry announced looking around the room happily, "To help change things."

**His aunt and uncle never spoke about them, and of course he was forbidden to ask questions. There were no photographs of them in the house. When he had been younger, Harry had dreamed and dreamed of some unknown relation coming to take him away, but it had never happened; **

"Sorry cub/pup." Remus and Sirius said together, looking guilty.

**the Dursleys were his only family. Yet sometimes he thought (or maybe hoped) that strangers in the street seemed to know him. Very strange strangers they were, too. **

**A tiny man in a violet top hat had bowed to him once while out shopping with Aunt Petunia and Dudley. After asking Harry furiously if he knew the man, Aunt Petunia had rushed them out of the shop without buying anything. A wild-looking old woman dressed all in green had waved merrily at him once on a bus. A bald man in a very long purple coat had actually shaken his hand in the street the other day and then walked away without a word. The weirdest thing about all these people was the way they seemed to vanish the second Harry tried to get a closer look. **

"Apparition." some-one muttered, obviously.

**At school, Harry had no one. Everybody knew that Dudley's gang hated that odd Harry Potter in his baggy old clothes and broken glasses, and nobody liked to disagree with Dudley's gang.**

"Meanies." Padfoot said pouting, he didn't like this book.

**A.N. Sorry guys took longer than I planned hopefully there won't be such a long delay for the next chapter, Rachael will keep pestering and poking me until I post it. Hope you liked it.**


	4. The letters from no one

**A/N Okay Hi its Sarah again, so HI! I am sooooooo sorry for the lateness, my dad stole my laptop for about a million weeks and it had this chapter on (and it is not an excuse, it's actually true) so I am so sorry for the lateness **

**Discliamer: Me: Hey JK, can I have the characters of Harry Potter?**

**JK: NO! No Way! Why would I let you have my babies?**

**Me: 'Cause I'm special**

**JK: No! Absolutely not! **

**Rach(giving JK puppy eyes) : But, can we borrow them?**

**JK: OK then, but get on with it!**

**Me: Back to the story...**

"_They got all the right friends in all the right places, so yeah, we're going down  
We've got all the right moves and all the wrong faces , so yeah, we're going down" One Republic – All the Right Moves _

"Okay, so can I read next?" said Padfoot, bouncing up and down like a YoYo.

"Erm... Okay" Said Harry, awkwardly, handing Padfoot the book.

"YEY! Harry, you are the best godson ever! Woooo!" Shouted Padfoot, making everybody laugh while giving him weird looks. "Okay, the chapter is called..." said Padfoot calming down, pausing for dramatic effect." **The Letters From No One**."

"Okay, how can that be possible?" said Hugo and Ron at the same time.

"You're so like Ron! Erm... I think this is when Harry gets his Hogwarts letter."

"Yep." Answered Harry.

**The escape of the Brazilian boa constrictor earned Harry his longest-ever punishment. By the time he was allowed out of his cupboard again, the summer holidays had started and Dudley had already broken his new video camera, crashed his remote control airplane, and, first time out on his racing bike, knocked down old Mrs. Figg as she crossed Privet Drive on her crutches. **

"Bloody hell, that's worse than Fred and George!" Ron said, looking surprised.

"Well, excuse us, Ronniekins for actually making things interesting." Fred and George said at the same time, looking mock offended.

**Harry was glad school was over, but there was no escaping Dudley's gang, who visited the house every single day. Piers, Dennis, Malcolm, and Gordon were all big and stupid, but as Dudley was the biggest and stupidest of the lot, he was the leader. **

"Really, why would anyone want him as a leader. It's like Voldy-Mouldy" said Padfoot.

"I know, I don't understand why anyone would do that to themselves." Said Lily. Draco and Regulus both looked uncomfortable.

**The rest of them were all quite happy to join in Dudley's favourite sport: Harry Hunting. **

**This was why Harry spent as much time as possible out of the house, wandering around and thinking about the end of the holidays, where he could see a tiny ray of hope. When September came he would be going off to secondary school and, for the first time in his life, he wouldn't be with Dudley. Dudley had been accepted at Uncle Vernon's old private school, Smeltings. Piers Polkiss was going there too. Harry, on the other hand, was going to Stonewall High, the local public school. Dudley thought this was very funny. **

"I don't know why he thought he was so funny, we would have been separated. The bastard," Harry said, shaking his head.

"I agree." Said Ginny, smiling slightly, Harry took her hand.

"**They stuff people's heads down the toilet the first day at Stonewall," he told Harry. "Want to come upstairs and practice?" **

"**No, thanks," said Harry. "The poor toilet's never had anything as horrible as your head down it — it might be sick." Then he ran, before Dudley could work out what he'd said. **

"Brilliant. Absolutely bloody brilliant!" Padfoot and Prongs said, giving Harry a standing ovation as everybody laughed.

"You've definitely got your father's humour, Harry." Said Sirus, looking at Harry proudly. "Even if you don't show it that often." He said the last part with a hint of sadness laced in his voice.

**One day in July, Aunt Petunia took Dudley to London to buy his Smeltings uniform, leaving Harry at Mrs. Figg's. **

"Oh well, at least she wasn't the Dursley's." Draco said, making Harry, Ron and Ginny look at him incredulously. "What, can't I comment anymore?" Making them look away shaking their heads.

**Mrs. Figg wasn't as bad as usual. It turned out she'd broken her leg tripping over one of her cats, and she didn't seem quite as fond of them as before. She let Harry watch television and gave him a bit of chocolate cake that tasted as though she'd had it for several years. **

"Eghh that must have been horrible." Padfoot said, shivering.

"Yeah, but it was better than I normally got." Harry replied making Lily and Ginny narrow their eyes.

**That evening, Dudley paraded around the living room for the family in his brand-new uniform. Smeltings' boys wore maroon tailcoats, orange knickerbockers, and flat straw hats called boaters. They also carried knobbly sticks, used for hitting each other while the teachers weren't looking. **

"What on earth is the point in that?" Lily asked.

"No idea, but he didn't shut up about it for weeks." Harry told her.

**This was supposed to be good training for later life. **

"How the hell would that help?" Sirius said.

"I don't know but I bet that he hit Harry with it." Lily said, glaring at the book.

"Have you taken to betting now, Lils? Looks like going out with Jamesie-boy here has shown a different side to you," Padfoot said, smirking. Lily just glared at him, her hand inching towards her wand.

**As he looked at Dudley in his new knickerbockers, Uncle Vernon said gruffly that it was the proudest moment of his life. Aunt Petunia burst into tears and said she couldn't believe it was her Ickle Dudleykins, he looked so handsome and grown-up. Harry didn't trust himself to speak. He thought two of his ribs might already have cracked from trying not to laugh. **

Which is what most of the room were doing now. Padfoot, Fred and George were already rolling about on the floor from laughter.

**There was a horrible smell in the kitchen the next morning when Harry went in for breakfast. It seemed to be coming from a large metal tub in the sink. He went to have a look. The tub was full of what looked like dirty rags swimming in gray water. **

"**What's this?" he asked Aunt Petunia. Her lips tightened as they always did if he dared to ask a question. **

"**Your new school uniform," she said. **

**Harry looked in the bowl again. **

"**Oh," he said, "I didn't realize it had to be so wet."**

"Sarcasm won't get you anywhere dear," Ron imitated Mrs Weasley's voice, making Harry, Hermione, Ginny, Fred and George snigger.

"**Don't be stupid," snapped Aunt Petunia. "I'm dyeing some of Dudley's old things gray for you. It'll look just like everyone else's when I've finished." **

"Yeah… right," Harry said, "I sometimes wondered if she was just plain thick or whether she was doing it on purpose." Al and Jay rolled their eyes at their future father.

**Harry seriously doubted this, but thought it best not to argue. **

**He sat down at the table and tried not to think about how he was going to look on his first day at Stonewall High — like he was wearing bits of old elephant skin, probably. **

**Dudley and Uncle Vernon came in, both with wrinkled noses because of the smell from Harry's new uniform. Uncle Vernon opened his newspaper as usual and Dudley banged his Smelting stick, which he carried everywhere, on the table. **

**They heard the click of the mail slot and flop of letters on the doormat. **

"**Get the mail, Dudley," said Uncle Vernon from behind his paper. **

"**Make Harry get it." **

"**Get the mail, Harry." **

"**Make Dudley get it." **

The room laughed, particularly towards the Marauder end of the circular/square shape.

"**Poke him with your Smelting stick, Dudley." **

"Lazy gits. Why can't they get it themselves?" George said frowning.

**Harry dodged the Smelting stick and went to get the mail. Three things lay on the doormat: a postcard from Uncle Vernon's sister Marge, who was vacationing on the Isle of Wight, a brown envelope that looked like a bill, and — **_**a letter for Harry**_**. **

"Ohh, is it your Hogwarts letter?" Padfoot said jumping up and down. Everyone rolled their eyes at his antics.

**Harry picked it up and stared at it, his heart twanging like a giant elastic band. **

"Well, that's not anything out of the ordinary." Ginny commented. Harry had the grace to blush.

"Hey, I did not need to know that Gin. You're my little sister." Ron said looking slightly angry. Ginny just smirked while the rest of the room looked awkward.

**No one, ever, in his whole life, had written to him. Who would? He had no friends, no other relatives — he didn't belong to the library, so he'd never even got rude notes asking for books back. Yet here it was, a letter, addressed so plainly there could be no mistake: **

_**Mr. H. Potter **_

_**The Cupboard under the Stairs 4 Privet Drive **_

_**Little Whinging **_

_**Surrey**_

Lily pressed her lips together at the mention of the cupboard; it made her feel like she wasn't a good mother. Even though Harry had turned out pretty well.

**The envelope was thick and heavy, made of yellowish parchment, and the address was written in emerald-green ink. **

**There was no stamp. **

**Turning the envelope over, his hand trembling, Harry saw a purple wax seal bearing a coat of arms; a lion, an eagle, a badger, and a snake surrounding a large letter **_**H**_**. **

"Yes, Hogwarts!" Padfoot shouted.

"Well done, Padfoot. You have finally learnt the Hogwarts crest, after spending seven bloody years at the place." Moony commented, rolling his eyes making the others chuckle at the blush creeping onto Padfoot's face.

"**Hurry up, boy!" shouted Uncle Vernon from the kitchen. "What are you doing, checking for letter bombs?" He chuckled at his own joke. **

"It was joke?" Tonks said, "What a weirdo."

**Harry went back to the kitchen, still staring at his letter. He handed Uncle Vernon the bill and the postcard, sat down, and slowly began to open the yellow envelope. **

**Uncle Vernon ripped open the bill, snorted in disgust, and flipped over the postcard. **

"**Marge's** **ill," he informed Aunt Petunia. "Ate a funny whelk…" **

"**Dad!" said Dudley suddenly. "Dad, Harry's got something!" **

"Shut up," Al hissed.

**Harry was on the point of unfolding his letter,**

"No Harry, you should have open that somewhere private," Lily said.

"I know that now," Harry said. "I didn't realize that they would care if I got a letter."

**which was written on the same heavy parchment as the envelope, when it was jerked sharply out of his hand by Uncle Vernon. **

"**That's **_**mine**_**!" said Harry, trying to snatch it back. **

"**Who'd be writing to you?" sneered Uncle Vernon, shaking the letter open with one hand and glancing at it. His face went from red to green faster than a set of traffic lights. And it didn't stop there. Within seconds it was the grayish white of old porridge. **

"**P-P-Petunia!" he gasped. **

**Dudley tried to grab the letter to read it, but Uncle Vernon held it high out of his reach. Aunt Petunia took it curiously and read the first line. For a moment it looked as though she might faint. She clutched her throat and made a choking noise. **

"**Vernon! Oh my goodness — Vernon!"**

"They don't seem too pleased about the letter," Frank chuckled.

"No, and it only made me want to read it more," Harry said.

**They stared at each other, seeming to have forgotten that Harry and Dudley were still in the room. Dudley wasn't used to being ignored. He gave his father a sharp tap on the head with his Smelting stick. **

"**I want to read that letter," he said loudly. **

"_**I **_**want to read it," said Harry furiously, "as it's **_**mine**_**." **

"**Get out, both of you," croaked Uncle Vernon, stuffing the letter back inside its envelope. **

**Harry didn't move. **

"**I WANT MY LETTER!" he shouted.**

"See, his mum's temper," Siruis said grinning and looking over at Remus with his hand held out. Harry grinned back at his godfather, not noticing his hand.

"Erm… Sirus, why are you holding you hand out to Remus as if he owes you money?" Ginny said, with her eyebrows raised.

"Well… erm…you see…I…erm" Sirus stuttered.

"Basically, Sirius and I betted about a week ago whose temper Harry's got. His mother's or his father's" Remus explained, looking awkward.

"Oh haha, so you betted on whose temper I've got out of my dead parents?" Harry exclaimed.

"Well, yeah. Sorta. Please forgive us." Sirius pleaded, looking at Harry with puppy eyes. Harry nodded.

"**Let **_**me **_**see it!" demanded Dudley. **

"**OUT!" roared Uncle Vernon, and he took both Harry and Dudley by the scruffs of their necks and threw them into the hall, slamming the kitchen door behind them. Harry and Dudley promptly had a furious but silent fight over who would listen at the keyhole; Dudley won, so Harry,**

"Oh, come on, Dad, you can easily beat him," said Jay.

"Yeah, I can now, but not when I was a scrawny git and he was the size of the biggest whale in the bloody world at the innocent age of just ten years old. So re-think what you just said." Harry replied. Jay looked indifferent.

**his glasses dangling from one ear, lay flat on his stomach to listen at the crack between door and floor. **

"**Vernon," Aunt Petunia was saying in a quivering voice, "look at the address — how could they possibly know where he sleeps? You don't think they're watching the house?" **

"**Watching — spying — might be following us," muttered Uncle Vernon wildly.**

"What a weirdo, you know I should have got there earlier," Sirius said.

"What are you talking about? You were keeping an eye on him, weren't you, Sirius?" Lily asked. He acted as if he couldn't hear her.

"**But what should we do, Vernon? Should we write back? Tell them we don't want —" **

**Harry could see Uncle Vernon's shiny black shoes pacing up and down the kitchen. **

"**No," he said finally. "No, we'll ignore it. If they don't get an answer… Yes, that's best… we won't do anything…" **

"Like that's going to work. Harry Potter not coming to Hogwarts? Yeah right." Fred and George said at the same time.

"Was I really that big before I went to Hogwarts?" Harry asked.

"Yeah, you were in _WitchGal_ - the witch magazine I used to get when I was younger – at least twice a month." Ginny said.

"You were way too stalkerish for your own good, Ginny," Ron said shaking his head.

The people from the past looked at the conversation with baffled looks, and eyes that practically begged for someone to tell them what they were on about.

"You'll find out later," Ted said, noticing these looks.

"**But —" **

"**I'm not having one in the house, Petunia! Didn't we swear when we took him in we'd stamp out that dangerous nonsense?"**

**That evening when he got back from work, Uncle Vernon did something he'd never done before; he visited Harry in his cupboard. **

"**Where's my letter?" said Harry, the moment Uncle Vernon had squeezed through the door. "Who's writing to me?" **

"**No one. It was addressed to you by mistake," said Uncle Vernon shortly. **

"**I have burned it." **

"What a bastard." Prongs said.

"Well said Prongs, you actually got something right." Said Padfoot, for once being totally serious.

"**It was **_**not **_**a mistake," said Harry angrily, "it had my cupboard on it." **

"**SILENCE!" yelled Uncle Vernon, and a couple of spiders fell from the ceiling. **

**He took a few deep breaths and then forced his face into a smile, which looked quite painful. **

"**Er — yes, Harry — about this cupboard. Your aunt and I have been thinking… you're really getting a bit big for it… we think it might be nice if you moved into Dudley's second bedroom. **

"He had a _second_ bedroom and they made you sleep in a cupboard." Lily said, sounding dangerously calm.

"Erm… yeah." Harry said hesitantly.

"Why?" Lily asked. Harry just looked at his father soundlessly asking him what to do. Prongs just shrugged, not knowing what to do either. "Why the hell did they make you sleep in a bloody cupboard, when that… _thing _had a second bedroom!"

At this point the people sitting near Lily started to edge away from her, including Prongs.

"**Why?" said Harry. **

"Why are you questioning it, mate?" Ron asked looking at Harry incredulously.

"It didn't feel right." Harry answered. Ron shrugged it off.

"**Don't ask questions!" snapped his uncle. "Take this stuff upstairs, now." **

**The Dursleys' house had four bedrooms: one for Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia, one for visitors (usually Uncle Vernon's sister, Marge), one where Dudley slept, and one where Dudley kept all the toys and things that wouldn't fit into his first bedroom. It only took Harry one trip upstairs to move everything he owned from the cupboard to this room. He sat down on the bed and stared around him. Nearly everything in here was broken. The month-old video camera was lying on top of a small, working tank Dudley had once driven over the next door neighbour's dog; in the corner was Dudley's first-ever television set, which he'd put his foot through when his favourite program had been cancelled; there was a large birdcage, which had once held a parrot that Dudley had swapped at school for a real air rifle, which was up on a shelf with the end all bent because Dudley had sat on it. Other shelves were full of books. They were the only things in the room that looked as though they'd never been touched. **

**From downstairs came the sound of Dudley bawling at his mother, "I don't **_**want **_**him in there… I **_**need **_**that room… make him get out…"**

"I think that that was the first time ever that Dudley didn't get what he wanted." Harry commented.

**Harry sighed and stretched out on the bed. Yesterday he'd have given anything to be up here. Today he'd rather be back in his cupboard with that letter than up here without it. **

**Next morning at breakfast, everyone was rather quiet. Dudley was in shock. He'd screamed, whacked his father with his Smelting stick, been sick on purpose, kicked his mother, and thrown his tortoise through the greenhouse roof, and he still didn't have his room back. Harry was thinking about this time yesterday and bitterly wishing he'd opened the letter in the hall. Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia kept looking at each other darkly. **

**When the mail arrived, Uncle Vernon, who seemed to be trying to be nice to Harry, made Dudley go and get it. **

**They heard him banging things with his Smelting stick all the way down the hall. Then he shouted, "There's another one! 'Mr. H. Potter, The Smallest Bedroom, 4 Privet Drive —'"**

**With a strangled cry, Uncle Vernon leapt from his seat and ran down the hall, Harry right behind him. Uncle Vernon had to wrestle Dudley to the ground to get the letter from him, which was made difficult by the fact that Harry had grabbed Uncle Vernon around the neck from behind. After a minute of confused fighting, in which everyone got hit a lot by the Smelting stick, Uncle Vernon straightened up, gasping for breath, with Harry's letter clutched in his hand. **

"Bastard." Frank muttered.

"**Go to your cupboard — I mean, your bedroom," he wheezed at Harry. "Dudley — go — just go." **

**Harry walked round and round his new room. Someone knew he had moved out of his cupboard and they seemed to know he hadn't received his first letter. Surely that meant they'd try again? And this time he'd make sure they didn't fail. He had a plan. **

"Oh God, please tell me that this isn't the part where you act like your father, i.e a prat." Lily said, frowning slightly.

"Hey!" Prongs exclaimed.

"Well, put it this way, it's a letter that was addressed to me, and I knew I had every right to get it. Did you really want me to just sit around and do nothing?" Harry explained.

"Well, no, but please tell me you don't act like your father." Lily asked. No one answered her.

**The repaired alarm clock rang at six o'clock the next morning. Harry turned it off quickly and dressed silently. He mustn't wake the Dursleys. He stole downstairs without turning on any of the lights. **

"That's actually quite a good plan Lily-flower," Padfoot said, nodding in approval.

"Well, I'm glad it's got the marauder's seal of approval," Harry said smirking.

"No plan should ever, ever be carried out without it," Padfoot said in his most serious voice.

"Just don't get into a habit of doing it." Lily said.

**He was going to wait for the postman on the corner of Privet Drive and get the letters for number four first. His heart hammered as he crept across the dark hall toward the front door — **

"**AAAAARRRGH!" **

**Harry leapt into the air; he'd trodden on something big and squashy on the doormat — something **_**alive**_**! **

"Ah shit, the pig in a wig's lump of a father thought of that too!" Prongs said, looking disappointed.

**Lights clicked on upstairs and to his horror Harry realized that the big, squashy something had been his uncle's face. Uncle Vernon had been lying at the foot of the front door in a sleeping bag, clearly making sure that Harry didn't do exactly what he'd been trying to do. He shouted at Harry for about half an hour and then told him to go and make a cup of tea. Harry shuffled miserably off into the kitchen and by the time he got back, the mail had arrived, right into Uncle Vernon's lap. Harry could see three letters addressed in green ink. **

"**I want —" he began, but Uncle Vernon was tearing the letters into pieces before his eyes. **

**Uncle Vernon didn't go to work that day. **

**He stayed at home and nailed up the mail slot. **

"**See," he explained to Aunt Petunia through a mouthful of nails, "if they can't **_**deliver **_**them they'll just give up." **

"**I'm not sure that'll work, Vernon." **

"See, she knows!" Lily said, getting angrier. "She bloody knows that you're a wizard, and she didn't do anything about it?"

"**Oh, these people's minds work in strange ways, Petunia, they're not like you and me," said Uncle Vernon, trying to knock in a nail with the piece of fruitcake Aunt Petunia had just brought him. **

"Yeah, 'cause that's going to work." Sev said , rolling his eyes.

**On Friday, the sides, and a few even forced through no less than twelve letters arrived for Harry. As they couldn't go through the mail slot they had been pushed under the door, slotted through the small window in the downstairs bathroom. **

**Uncle Vernon stayed at home again. After burning all the letters, he got out a hammer and nails and boarded up the cracks around the front and back doors so no one could go out. He hummed "Tiptoe Through the Tulips" as he worked, and jumped at small noises. **

**On Saturday, things began to get out of hand. Twenty-four letters to Harry found their way into the house, rolled up and hidden inside each of the two-dozen eggs that their very confused milkman had handed Aunt Petunia through the living room window. **

"Haha. ROFL." Al said, chuckling.

"What did you say? ROFL? What does that mean?" Wormtail asked.

"It means Rolling On Floor Laughing." Al explained.

"But you're not, so how does that make any sense?" Remus said, looking puzzled. Al shrugged.

**While Uncle Vernon made furious telephone calls to the post office and the dairy trying to find someone to complain to, Aunt Petunia shredded the letters in her food processor. **

"**Who on earth wants to talk to **_**you **_**this badly?" Dudley asked Harry in amazement.**

"A lot of people actually," George said, looking at a blushing Ginny.

"Oh My God, you actually wanted to speak to me that badly?" Harry said, looking down at his girlfriend.

"Well, you are/were like a hero to girls and boys all over the wizarding world." Ginny said, looking uncomfortable.

**On Sunday morning, Uncle Vernon sat down at the breakfast table looking tired and rather ill, but happy. **

"**No post on Sundays," he reminded them cheerfully as he spread marmalade on his newspapers, "no damn letters today —" **

**Something came whizzing down the kitchen chimney as he spoke and caught him sharply on the back of the head. Next moment, thirty or forty letters came pelting out of the fireplace like bullets. The Dursleys ducked, but Harry leapt into the air trying to catch one — **

"Why didn't you just pick one off the floor?" Tonks asked.

Harry blushed, he never thought of that.

"Tonks, be nice," Remus said.

"Sorry, but Merlin Harry, you're blushing!" Tonks said, "You've been hanging out with the Weasley's too much."

"Hey! That's offensive!" Ron said, standing up and pointing a finger at Tonks.

"Ron, sit down." Hermione said, looking at her nails. He sat down quickly, not taking his eyes off Tonks.

"**Out! OUT!" **

**Uncle Vernon seized Harry around the waist and threw him into the hall. When Aunt Petunia and Dudley had run out with their arms over their faces, Uncle Vernon slammed the door shut. They could hear the letters still streaming into the room, bouncing off the walls and floor. **

"**That does it," said Uncle Vernon, trying to speak calmly but pulling great tufts out of his moustache at the same time. "I want you all back here in five minutes ready to leave. We're going away. Just pack some clothes. No arguments!" **

**He looked so dangerous with half his moustache missing that no one dared argue. Ten minutes later they had wrenched their way through the boarded-up doors and were in the car, speeding toward the highway. Dudley was sniffling in the back seat; his father had hit him round the head for holding them up while he tried to pack his television, VCR, and computer in his sports bag. **

"He's a bloody idiot." Prongs stated.

**They drove. And they drove. Even Aunt Petunia didn't dare ask where they were going. Every now and then Uncle Vernon would take a sharp turn and drive in the opposite direction for a while. **

"**Shake 'em off… shake 'em off," he would mutter whenever he did this.**

"You've got to be kidding me, he has gone even more mental then he was before," Padfoot said, receiving a snort from Wormtail.

**They didn't stop to eat or drink all day. By nightfall Dudley was howling. He'd never had such a bad day in his life. He was hungry, he'd missed five television programs he'd wanted to see, and he'd never gone so long without blowing up an alien on his computer. **

"He's a bloody idiot." Prongs said.

"You've said that already." Padfoot stated.

"It seemed worth repeating." Prongs shrugged.

**Uncle Vernon stopped at last outside a gloomy-looking hotel on the outskirts of a big city. Dudley and Harry shared a room with twin beds and damp, musty sheets. Dudley snored but Harry stayed awake, sitting on the windowsill, staring down at the lights of passing cars and wondering… **

"Oh God, here we go again, Harry has gone off on one of his thinking moments that he doesn't come out of for at least an hour," Ron said rolling his eyes.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Harry said, frowning, glancing over at Ron.

"What it means, mate. You're mental." Ron replied.

**They ate stale cornflakes and cold tinned tomatoes on toast for breakfast the next day. They had just finished when the owner of the hotel came over to their table. **

"'**Scuse me, but is one of you Mr. H. Potter? Only I got about an 'undred of these at the front desk." **

**She held up a letter so they could read the green ink address: **

_**Mr. H. Potter **_

_**Room 17 **_

_**Railview Hotel **_

_**Cokeworth **_

"Seriously, these owls are _stalking _you!" Al said, making a few people chuckle.

**Harry made a grab for the letter but Uncle Vernon knocked his hand out of the way. The woman stared. **

"**I'll take them," said Uncle Vernon, standing up quickly and following her from the dining room. **

"**Wouldn't it be better just to go home, dear?" Aunt Petunia suggested timidly, hours later, but Uncle Vernon didn't seem to hear her.**

"She must have realized it was pointless to run," Teddy said.

"He should listen to her, she knows that this is magic and might know what to do." Lily said sadly.

**Exactly what he was looking for, none of them knew. He drove them into the middle of a forest, got out, looked around, shook his head, got back in the car, and off they went again. The same thing happened in the middle of a ploughed field, halfway across a suspension bridge, and at the top of a multilevel parking garage. **

"**Daddy's gone mad, hasn't he?" Dudley asked Aunt Petunia dully late that afternoon. **

"Wow, your Uncle's off his rocker, Harry, even Dudley realizes it," Fred said.

**Uncle Vernon had parked at the coast, locked them all inside the car, and disappeared. **

**It started to rain. Great drops beat on the roof of the car. Dudley sniveled. **

"**It's Monday," he told his mother. "The Great Humberto's on tonight. I want to stay somewhere with a **_**television**_**." **

**Monday. This reminded Harry of something. If it **_**was **_**Monday — and you could usually count on Dudley to know the days the week, because of television — then tomorrow, Tuesday, was Harry's eleventh birthday. **

"Really, happy birthday!" Lily said looking at her son, who thanked her, smiling slightly.

"Lily it's his birthday in the book, not in really life," Padfoot said, exasperated, "Even _I_ know that."

**Of course, his birthdays were never exactly fun — last year, the Dursleys had given him a coat hanger and a pair of Uncle Vernon's old socks. **

"That's horrible, the bastards plus bitch." Lily said, frowning, "They never gave you proper presents?"

"No," Harry replied.

**Still, you weren't eleven every day. **

**Uncle Vernon was back and he was smiling. **

"It's not good if he's smiling," Neville stated.

**He was also carrying a long, thin package and didn't answer Aunt Petunia when she asked what he'd bought. **

"**Found the perfect place!" he said. "Come on! Everyone out!" **

**It was very cold outside the car. Uncle Vernon was pointing at what looked like a large rock way out at sea. Perched on top of the rock was the most miserable little shack you could imagine. One thing was certain, there was no television in there. **

"**Storm forecast for tonight!" said Uncle Vernon gleefully, clapping his hands together. "And this gentleman's kindly agreed to lend us his boat!" **

**A toothless old man came ambling up to them, pointing, with a rather wicked grin, at an old rowboat bobbing in the iron-gray water below them. **

"**I've already got us some rations," said Uncle Vernon, "so all aboard!" **

**It was freezing in the boat. Icy sea spray and rain crept down their necks and a chilly wind whipped their faces. After what seemed like hours they reached the rock, where Uncle Vernon, slipping and sliding, led the way to the broken-down house. **

**The inside was horrible; it smelled strongly of seaweed, the wind whistled through the gaps in the wooden walls, and the fireplace was damp and empty. There were only two rooms. **

**Uncle Vernon's rations turned out to be a bag of chips each and four bananas. **

**He tried to start a fire but the empty chip bags just smoked and shrivelled up. **

"What an idiot," Jay said.

"**Could do with some of those letters now, eh?" he said cheerfully.**

"Oh he is _so_ dead when I get to him," Lily said, balling her hands into fists.

**He was in a very good mood. Obviously he thought nobody stood a chance of reaching them here in a storm to deliver mail. **

**Harry privately agreed, though the thought didn't cheer him up at all. **

"You're kind of a pessimist, Harry," Remus said.

"Have you only just realised? Seriously, you're supposed to be my non-biological Uncle." Harry said.

"Well, I try to look at the good points of you, not the bad." Remus replied.

**As night fell, the promised storm blew up around them. Spray from the high waves splattered the walls of the hut and a fierce wind rattled the filthy windows. Aunt Petunia found a few moldy blankets in the second room and made up a bed for Dudley on the moth-eaten sofa. She and Uncle Vernon went off to the lumpy bed next door, and Harry was left to find the softest bit of floor he could and to curl up under the thinnest, most ragged blanket. **

**The storm raged more and more ferociously as the night went on. Harry couldn't sleep. He shivered and turned over, trying to get comfortable, his stomach rumbling with hunger. Dudley's snores were drowned by the low rolls of thunder that started near midnight. The lighted dial of Dudley's watch, which was dangling over the edge of the sofa on his fat wrist, told Harry he'd be eleven in ten minutes' time. He lay and watched his birthday tick nearer, wondering if the Dursleys would remember at all, wondering where the letter writer was now. **

**Five minutes to go. Harry heard something creak outside. He hoped the roof wasn't going to fall in, although he might be warmer if it did. **

**Four minutes to go. Maybe the house in Privet Drive would be so full of letters when they got back that he'd be able to steal one somehow. **

**Three minutes to go. Was that the sea, slapping hard on the rock like that? And (two minutes to go) what was that funny crunching noise? Was the rock crumbling into the sea? **

**One minute to go and he'd be eleven. Thirty seconds… twenty… ten… nine — maybe he'd wake Dudley up, just to annoy him **

— **three… two… one… **

**BOOM. **

The marauders shouted with excitement, and angst, making Lily and Sev jump back in reflex and Harry hold onto baby Teddy tighter.

**The whole shack shivered and Harry sat bolt upright, staring at the door. Someone was outside, knocking to come in.**

"Ohhh, it's getting exciting isn't it?" Albus Dumbledore said clapping his hands together in anticipation.

"Right, let's get onto the next chapter then." Big Teddy said.

**Again, I am so sorry for the delay, **

**Dolphin35366 **


End file.
